Bellarmine Museum focuses on Easton’s James Prosek

Phyllis A.S. Boros, Staff Writer

Updated 12:02 pm, Friday, October 14, 2011

Photo: Contributed Photo

Image 1of/8

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 8

"Cockatool," a watercolor by James Prosek, features a cockatiel whose crest is made up of tools from a Swiss Army knife. It's included in "James Prosek: Un-Natural History" at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University. less

"Cockatool," a watercolor by James Prosek, features a cockatiel whose crest is made up of tools from a Swiss Army knife. It's included in "James Prosek: Un-Natural History" at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at ... more

Photo: Contributed Photo

Image 2 of 8

"Sailfish" is included in "James Prosek: Un-Natural History" at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University Oct. 21-Dec. 21.

"Sailfish" is included in "James Prosek: Un-Natural History" at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University Oct. 21-Dec. 21.

Photo: Contributed Photo

Image 3 of 8

"Parrotfishe" is included in "James Prosek: Un-Natural History" at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University Oct. 21-Dec. 21.

"Parrotfishe" is included in "James Prosek: Un-Natural History" at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University Oct. 21-Dec. 21.

Artist James Prosek works on a lifesize painting of a Blue Marlin on the floor of his Easton studio. Prosek is showing his work at Fairfield University's Bellarmine Museum of Art from October 21 to December 21.

Artist James Prosek works on a lifesize painting of a Blue Marlin on the floor of his Easton studio. Prosek is showing his work at Fairfield University's Bellarmine Museum of Art from October 21 to December 21.

Those exquisite moments when a stunning specimen of a trout breaks the water -- "glinting in the sun" -- and appears on the end of one's fly line are childhood experiences that changed the life of artist James Prosek.

In the past two decades, the renowned Easton author and artist has dedicated himself to studying -- and celebrating -- the natural world through his artistic, cinematic and literary pursuits.

His most recent venture is "James Prosek: Un-Natural History," an exhibition of his most recent works -- many of which are fantastical and whimsical -- at Fairfield University's Bellarmine Museum of Art. The show opens Friday, Oct. 21, with a free public reception at 5 p.m., which Prosek is scheduled to attend.

On view through Dec. 21, the exhibit will include about 20 pieces, mostly watercolors, some created especially for this show. Also on display are several taxidermied specimens that were chosen by the artist to complement his pieces.

A "visually exciting, intellectually stimulating show," says museum Director Dr. Jill Deupi, an assistant professor of art history. "In `Un-Natural History,' James Prosek questions the accepted norms by proposing new and unusual ways for considering the world around us. Through his renderings of specimens, both real and imagined, the artist invites the viewer to reflect on the ways" many humans have "chosen to organize the natural world and to question what these systems say about our culture, our priorities and our values."

His "images are not only beautiful and frequently witty, they are also thought-provoking," adds Deupi. "His capacity to expose the artificiality of many of the systems that we accept as predetermined or `natural' is a talent rivaled only by his skills as a visual artist."

"A deep, profound love of nature" -- spurred by all his fishing expeditions near his home as a child -- is what informs all his work, the artist said in a recent chat from his Easton home.

In the Bellarmine show, Prosek paints with enormous detail -- as a naturalist would -- capturing the unique elements of each of his subjects. But in several works, he combines the bizarre with the real.

Consider this: "Cockatool," for example, features a cockatiel, whose crest is made up of tools from a Swiss Army knife, including scissors and a knife blade. In "Parakeets," a drill bit replaces the bird's beak; in "Parrotfishe," a specimen has the body of a fish and the head and plumage of a bird. In a three-dimensional piece, a taxidermied fox comes with bird wings and custom-made clay flowers. Also featured will be a monumental watercolor of a sailfish, which is painted to scale at more than 8 feet in length.

Prosek said the show is for him an exploration of how humans identify and name the natural world.

"I try to put a contemporary spin" on ... "why humans draw and why we have always had this desire to depict nature and the world around us." It also explores "what we see as real or imagined.

"In nature, things are always fluid, changing, interconnected." But humans, he pointed out, created language to label and define the world ... "to divide the world into parts. But, sadly," he says, "language also causes us to see ourselves separate from nature when we really are a part of it."

Fans throughout the region may remember that the Easton native received national attention as a 19-year-old student at Yale University in 1996 when Alfred A. Knopf published his first of many books, "Trout: An Illustrated History," featuring 70 watercolor paintings of North American trout.

His most recent book, "Eels: An Exploration, from New Zealand to the Sargasso, of the World's Most Amazing and Mysterious Fish" (HarperCollins, 2010), a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice, is described as exploring both the biological complexities and the prominent role this remarkable fish continues to play in native lore and creation myths among traditional peoples, such as New Zealand's Maori. He has also authored several books for young children and adolescents, including "Bird, Butterfly, Eel" (Simon & Schuster, 2009) and "The Day My Mother Left" (Simon & Schuster, 2007).

It was also at Yale that he laid the groundwork for his Peabody Award-winning documentary film, "The Complete Angler" (2003), that retraces the footsteps of the 17th century angler Izaak Walton,

"James Prosek: Un-Natural History" features a catalog with contributed essays by Deupi; Dr. Brian Walker, an associate professor of biology; and Dr. Scott Lacy, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology, all of Fairfield University. Numerous special events will be offered in conjunction with the exhibit; visit the website for details.

The Bellarmine Museum of Art is at Bellarmine Hall on the campus of Fairfield University, 1073 North Benson Road. Admission is free. It is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., from September through June, and on the second Saturday of the month from noon to 5 p.m. Closed for all university holidays. Visit www.fairfield.edu/museum or call 203- 254-4000, ext. 4046.

PROSEK SPECIAL EVENTS

The artist says that although he loves the solitude of working alone in his studio, he welcomes the opportunity to interact with the public for feedback. He will have several opportunities to do so in the upcoming weeks, as the museum has scheduled several free programs to coincide with his exhibition. All events take place at the Bellarmine Museum, unless otherwise noted.

Wednesdays, Oct. 26, Nov. 9, Nov. 30 and Dec. 7, all at 1 p.m., screenings of "The Complete Angler"; Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 6 p.m., Anne Fadiman, of Yale University, will read selections from her essay "Collecting Nature" in addition to participating in a panel discussion with Deupi, Prosek and others; Monday, Nov. 7, at 5.30 p.m., Prosek will give a gallery talk; Saturday, Nov. 12, at 3 p.m., Prosek's children's books will be the focus at Second Saturday Family Day activities; Thursday, Dec. 1, at 7 p.m., Deupi will give a presentation at Fairfield Public Library, 1080 Old Post Road, about the museum and Prosek's exhibition.